Tearing by at a breakneck speed, I Should Coco is a spectacularly eclectic debut by Supergrass, a trio barely out of their teens. Sure, the unbridled energy of the album illustrates that the band is young, yet what really illustrates how young the bandmembers are is how they borrow from their predecessors. Supergrass treat the Buzzcocks, the Beatles, Elton John, David Bowie, Blur, and Madness as if they were all the same thing -- they don't make any distinction between what is cool and what isn't, they just throw everything together. Consequently, the jittery "Caught by the Fuzz" slams next to the music hall rave-up "Mansize Rooster" and the trippy psychedelia of "Sofa of My Lethargy," or the heavy stomp of "Lenny" or the bona fide teen anthem "Alright." I Should Coco is the sound of adolescence, but performed with a surprising musical versatility that makes the record's exuberant energy all the more infectious. - AMG
Unhappy with the slicker approach of Setting Sons, the Jam got back to basics, using the direct, economic playing of All Mod Cons and "Going Underground," the simply brilliant single that preceded Sound Affects by a few months. Thematically, though, Paul Weller explored a more indirect path, leaving behind (for the most part) the story-song narratives in favor of more abstract dealings in spirituality and perception -- the approach stemming from his recent readings of Blake and Shelley (who was quoted on the sleeve), but more specifically Geoffrey Ashe, whose Camelot and the Vision of Albion made a strong impression. Musically, Weller drew upon Revolver-era Beatles as a primary source (the bassline on "Start," which comes directly from "Taxman," being the most obvious occurrence), incorporating the occasional odd sound and echoed vocal, which implied psychedelia without succumbing to its excesses. From beginning to end, the songs are pure, clever, infectious pop -- probably their catchiest -- with "That's Entertainment" and the should-have-been-a-single "Man in the Corner Shop" standing out.
Universal’s 2010 Deluxe Edition of Sound Affects contains a remastered version of the original album on the first disc and a wealth of bonus material on the second disc, much of which is absent on the complete box Direction Reaction Creation. The bonus disc begins with the single version of “Start!” and runs through the B-sides “Liza Radley” and “Dreams of Children” before getting into a host of demos and alternate takes, stopping on the occasional oddity like the fan club flexi-disc “Pop Art Poem.” Much of this previously saw the light of day either on the rarities comp Extras or Direction Reaction Creation, but there are a few items making their debut here: a demo with overdubs of “Pretty Green,” a demo of “Boy About Town,” a previously unreleased instrumental of “Scrape Away,” a demo of “Start!,” an alternate “Monday,” an instrumental demo, a “dub ending” of “Set the House Ablaze,” and finally a demo of “Waterloo Sunset."
I love stumbling across bands on the internet, especially when they are this good and why is nobody shouting about them? Why am I not already aware of them?
The Joy of Painting are from Nashville TN. and they play some really great tunes with some fantastic 3 or 4 part harmonies, I can't quite work it out but what I do know that to stumble blindly through the world wide web and find something as delicious as this is a brilliant feeling.
The songs on this seven track album are recorded live which gives you an indication of this bands enormous talent.
What others are saying:
"Accidently grandiose and bursting with color and energy." -Murfreesboro Pulse
"I hear a lot of Weezer in this record...it is certainly some catchy pop, but it also has the fuel of post-punk." -No Country for New Nashville
"From Self to Kyle Andrews to Fun [Nashville] has managed to produce a number of the best artists of the past few years. Go ahead and add Joy of Painting to that list, because their first EP is an artistically brilliant debut that will truly surprise you." -Obvious Pop
Colorful and delicious like your favorite cereal, full of groovy gravy beats and mom-approved hooks.
Daemon Familiar is a power-pop trio from Chicago dedicated to reviving the lost art of the catchy pop/rock song. A tight meld of their musical roots Cheap Trick, Husker Du, and Sloan creates their raw riff-driven compositions. Infectious hooks, vocal harmonies, and crunchy guitar melodies are their stock in trade. Not since Cheap Trick has a band from Illinois set out to deliver songs so unforgettable they'll be tattooed on your cerebral cortex.
Formed in 2006, Daemon Familiar has quickly built a following both locally and online, playing shows throughout Chicago at venues such as the Beat Kitchen, Elbo Room, Reggie's Live, The Empty Bottle, and the Underground Lounge, as well as other locations in the Midwest. Their sound has drawn comparisons to bands as varied as Cheap Trick, Sloan, Husker Du and Barenaked Ladies. The band released its debut album, Dawn of the Albatross, to strong reviews in 2009, with the Illinois Entertainer proclaiming, "...there's no denying the crunchy sweetness of Daemon Familiar's Dawn Of The Albatross." Daemon Familiar has also appeared on two compilation CDs, including Fabsound Records Fights Autism.
[Photograph by Mio Nomura]
Brontasaurus Rex is a 7 track Power Pop album filled with chopping guitars and nifty hooks driven along by solid drum and bass section.
The album kicks of with the infectious and catchy song "Kate" filled with Ba Ba Ba's and the ultra catchy chorus which is almost impossible not to sing along to. Susanna Hoffs of The Bangles gets a dedicated song on the album, hailing her as a Power Pop queen in a driving wall of guitar sound.
Brontasaurus Rex is a straight up, well produced body of work and incorporates just about everything you need, and want, from a Power Pop band that melds the likes of Cheap Trick with the stylings of Husker Du and Weezer. A perfect driving album!
Here is a video of Daemon Familiar doing it for the kids, playing "Kate" at an all ages Chicago dance show! I don't think they really play on Rock Band instruments! ;)
1964, West Germany. Five American GIs in a rockband combat Beatlemania by attempting to be the "anti-Beatles." Managed by Situationist-minded German advertising gurus, they're wholly branded as The Monks: dressed in black cassocks, tonsures shaved on heads, nooses hung around their necks. They strip the drum-kit of its cymbals, bash a banjo as a percussive instrument, and grow ever tighter and nastier as they tour Germany constantly, playing for audiences who usually despise them. They make one viciously-rhythmic record, Black Monk Time then implode in the face of the public's disinterest/dislike. But they leave their mark: the subsequent generation of German krautrockers owing an obvious debt to The Monks' devotion to repetition.
Another new band hailing from the North West of Spain (A Coruña) with a really nice set of jangly power pop songs....they must put something special in the water up there!
The EP has three tracks of melodically satisfying tunes with a really nice uncomplicated driving beat behind them so as not to detract from the jangly guitar sounds.
The band quotes artistss like The Nerves, The Jam, Teenage Fanclub, The Kinks, Badfinger and The Lemonheads as influences and they have certainly caught that sound without directly mimicking any of them.
I really like this bands sound and for a band that have only been together since 2011 they seem to gel very well as a group.
Whilst all the songs on the EP have a standout quality, "We won't turn it back" which is sung in their native Spanish seems to flow better than those in English, which seem quite nonsensical, this however, would be my only criticism of this band and they will certainly be one on my watch list and I would actually be more than happy listening to more offerings from them in their native tongue!
One of Ice Cream Mans favourite artists is giving away his mini album "Identity Theft" away free, this album is available to buy online but the artists is receiving no royalties from this vendor and would rather you have it gratis!!! Enjoy and please swing by the Baby Scream page on Facebook and show this very talented artist some love.
Baby Scream are also encouraging you to download the brilliant album "Up's and Down's" album completely FREE too, two brilliant albums FREE, who said Mondays are rubbish!!!!!!
